David Hidalgo appears on Rooster and WestLA and tears up the latter.

Sunday shows are typically less popular. The Friday night show of this Laguna Seca run ranks 96 (of 2,000+ dates) and is the most popular show of 1988 on archive.org. In contrast this show is a lazy Sunday afternoon matinee that probably never sought to attain such heights. I found it as enjoyable as any other; it ranks in the middle, as does the night before.

Many weekend runs follow a similar pattern.

Made the drive down from hot Sacramento. Love the coastal weather. Caught Sat and Sun shows. It was just a wonderful seeing the Dead again kind of weekend. My thanks to the Deadhead in Salinas for letting us spend the night in his yard.
Musically not a whole lot stood out. Saturday Eyes of the World was enjoyable. Sunday Terrapin scared my friends girl really bad; she was not having a good day. Morning Dew was well played also.
Just the experience of seeing the boys in Monterey for a few days was well worth the trip. Completely enjoyed following this band.

Worth the Spin

Listening back to much of 1988, the band is inconsistent, at times unfocused, and often sounding tired/burnt out, and even at times uninterested. This show is exceptional. There’s a lot of good energy here, certainly sparked by Los Lobos opening. David‘s solo on West LA is excellent, and and I think inspiring to Jerry. There are a lot of strong performances here: Uncle>Big River, Birdsong, Women, Dew. I missed the Friday show with the epic Playin’, but to me The Other One here is kind of a bookend to that - lots of cool exploration. For an “off” year, I like this show a lot.

I sang a little while and then flew on.

i was born the day of this show...pretty epic setlist....quality of this show is pretty good as well

Have to agree this is not a hi-lite of 1988. i happened upon the Sirius/XM broadcast of this show on its anniversary the other day and heard a few songs that really didnt sound very inspired and i had liked day 1 of this run so i came back on here to give it a good listen. For me, this is weakest show of the 3.....Jerry's voice is awfull and his playing is generally downbeat other than a few moments wherein Brent seems to get him goin a bit. Day 1 remains the hi-lite of the run to me with its China-Crazy-Rider.....at least that is something different and interesting while this show is really dominated by lackluster playing and poor vocals from Jer

I listened to a few songs on this set but i don't understand the great reviews. The intruments and vocals cut "in and out"
It may have been a great show musically but I have a hard time listening to this version.
The most notable thing about this show, is Dave Hidalgo on Rooster and West LA. Perhaps this is a great show. When I find a little patience, I'll try to listen again, and see if I was missing something these other revieer's found.

This is my fav of the 5 they did at Laguna Seca.
The LRR solo not on slide isn't Bobby, but it is the guitarist from Los Lobos.

Epic Dew!!!

Probably my favorite show of the year.

i was the first let in and was front row center for this one...jerrys b-day was the next day..so after tunning for halfstep...jerry turns around and everyone around who was giving a rose throws them on stage!!! it was a great day..had tixs for all three shows but had no money...so thanks to that person who gave me there sandwich duing the setbreak..on sunday..and thanks to the bagel girl!!..she kicked down some free bagels....and to the fatty egg roll people....life was great that summer of 88''..............

I am a fan of most of the shows in 88'. Sure its got its flaws, but no more than average. I pesonally like the bird/Hell/Foolish trio. Good encore as well. Sound quality is nice also.

Was this the day that was foggy? It was still very cool until the Dead went on after noon when the sun was over the stage when looking from the hill.

The warmth parted the clouds for the Dead, and it stayed clear until the Dead finished and the clouds closed back up. This was my trippiest Dead/weather experience.

Great show from 88!

Bobby on Rooster!! what a soulful solo!!! from 2:20 - 2:58. first time i've ever heard him take a non-slide solo!! soo cool!

1st Set: A muted veiling appears to be covering the speakers making the sound less than thrilling. A mildly passive but smooth "Mississippi" opens up the final night somewhere near the beach?! I'm digging the sly drumming during "Rooster." Jerry's soloing in the late 2's is convincing Chicago/BB King Blues...it's earthy and gritty instead of ethereal - a nice change of pace. oopsy, that's actually David Hidalgo. Too bad he's not worthy of an introduction. That slide sounds atrociously offputting and tacky considering the modesty of Jerry's contributions. "West LA" is fine, but won't be lighting up anyone's 'best of' lists. "Uncle" picks up the sluggish pace a bit, and "River's" a decent foot-tapper. Goofy sounds 'when she gets to Memphis' "Ramble" featires some nice Q-bertian wah-wah's. Hmmm..I smell a "Gentleman" coming...uh huh, it's got a mean drive and a point. We stand in solidarity hoping to carve our own "Masterpiece." Now I smell a "Bird." Hmmm...nice - it's magical and soars into intense places during the early 7's. Unfortunately, you can always count on Bobby's guitar to provide some discord. However, it's lovely, if it doesn't end with a solid flourish.

2nd Set: Time to get the crowd moving with a standard "Hell" that ventures into no new territory. "Foolish" is sluggish and would be forgettable if it wasn;t for Brent's occasional inspiring flourish. BTW, on a down night, the song brings out the worst in Jerry's whining tendencies. "Man Smart" is lively but not spectacular. Jerry's croaking through "Terrapin" but hits some lovely notes nonetheless. The jam gets awfully quiet to make room for "I Will Take." It's a scratchy-standard thing. The tones stay ominous and dark during "Drums/Space" I'm enjoying the demented scrapes provided during the ten and eleven's. "Space" and "TOO" are one ten minute spiraling concoction filled with varying demons possessing Bobby. After that imposing yet fluid 20 minutes of music, ('Drums/Space/TOO all together on this tape) why not get hedonistically raucous with "Miracle?" It's good, but not great. "Morning" is a generous selection, but if only Jerry's voice could be so giving. Thankfully, his true instrument - fingers plus guitar - more than suffice. They pull off the standard getting real quiet during the late 8's early 9's so the level of noise astounds as they build to a sufficient climax.

The final song of the three night stand is - whoa, "Midnight Hour." It's a loosely-solid give and take version featuring Bobby and Brent. not much there

3 stars

Very nice Brent showw. One of two Start your Engines played. Wonder why they stopped playing it, not a bad tune. Take you Home is good too. Some people hated hearing Brent sing but he was pretty powerful.

I found a small glitch at the end of Hell in a Bucket, the last 4 seconds or so repeat right before Foolish Heart. It was an easy fix to just chop it off with sound forge, but I figured I'd mention it.

I had set 2 on cassette and It's always been one of my favorite shows from '88. The sound on this show is nice and crisp with loads of Phil. I like this whole set, even though some of the songs aren't really favorites, they're well played with energy. An excellent terrapin highlights the pre drums segment. This is one of my favorite drums > space. In fact this why I loved this tape so much. I listen to it LOUD. So loud my speakers groan and crackle in pain, but the space is so strange and deeply psychedelic that it's worth it. Lots of huge deep bending noise,( I don't know what any of those drums are called) followed by this intermittent super low vibration/bass? that is more like anti-sound. There is a little bit of crackling here which is mentioned in the text file. There is also a a slight pause at the tape flip. There is really no distinction between the space and the Other One. The Other One just rolls out of space like the tide. Waves of sound dripping with distortion slowly twist into the spaciest Other One I've encounted. Bobby follows up with a rockin Miracle thats finishes with a nice smooth transition into an amazing Morning Dew. I also like the Midnight Hour encore. I'm giving four stars because of the minor recording flaws and the tape cut. I would have to say four and a half because the glitches are small and the sound and performance otherwise are excellent.

I definitely recommend downloading this one, if just to hear the space > Other One. Set two is a monster that should delight for years to come.

I ALSO HAD THE CALMARI . IT WAS FRESH FROM THE PACIFIC. DAVID LINDLEY OPENED UP FOR LOS LOBOS THEN THE DEAD. BRENT HAD ME CRYIN`

Another hi energy show from 1988 spurred by the presence of Los Lobos. Jerry played on two songs with the Lobes for their encore. This show was well played throughout. At the end of Dew there is a hint of lovelight from Jerry which Bobby quickly aborted.

Laguna Seca was probably the best venue for the Dead to play in California given it's isolation from the real world and the camping available. I remember eating the fried calamari for lunch everyday while the boys played on. It is a beautiful spot which brought out the best in the Dead. This run surpassed the 1987 run in my view; more consistent performances.

But where is the show from two nights before? Now that was a show. I feel truly honored to have had such a superb show occur on my birtday. China > Crazy Fingers > Rider > Playing is out-of-this-world!